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^Too bad it's against the rules to include information from the manga, even WITHIN spoiler tags. There is separate thread for the people who wish to discuss about the manga, no need to put spoilers here. Besides, if the spoiler is only marked as '' Episode 211 '', how are you supposed to know what the spoiler contains as everyone else's spoilers from 211 were exactly that, only about what happens in the anime.

Much of what i posted was actually just clarifying what was implied / revealed in the episode. (Though I might have gotten a bit carried away with the exposition on the motives of some of the characters)

Because they dont have any worth mention skill...
Just brawling and slashing skill...

Which makes it more realistic as a result. In Naruto/One Piece/Bleach and most other shounens characters can explain whole technique and the opponent just waits and listens until the explanation is finished.

^Do they really do that in One Piece though? They all have their special attacks and they scream the attack name as is typical for shonens, but I seriously can't remember them explaining their techniques. I might be wrong though and can't just remember seeing as One Piece has been.. quite different for like 100 episodes now <.<

Azuma : Gintoki definitely is skilled, just doesn't have special attacks. I think this works much better for Gintama. I don't really care about realism in anime or not but yeah, I can't imagine Gintama's action being as it is with OP/Bleach/Naruto.

I originally wasn't big on Soraichi's serious manga arcs shoehorned into his fantastic comedy (they seemed weak compared to One Piece/Bleach type ilk) but they've got steadily better in terms of story as time goes on. This is good stuff.

Plus the animation during the fight was pretty good, and I am LOVING Jirocho as a villian.

I originally wasn't big on Soraichi's serious manga arcs shoehorned into his fantastic comedy (they seemed weak compared to One Piece/Bleach type ilk) but they've got steadily better in terms of story as time goes on. This is good stuff.

...Really? It's the other way around for me. His comedy is very hit and miss, whereas the few serious arcs are consistently awesome. Benizakura, Yagyu, Shinsengumi Crisis, Yoshiwara, you name it. They're all high points of the series for sure.

...Really? It's the other way around for me. His comedy is very hit and miss, whereas the few serious arcs are consistently awesome. Benizakura, Yagyu, Shinsengumi Crisis, Yoshiwara, you name it. They're all high points of the series for sure.

Agreed. Plus every serious arc in Gintama has some hilarious moments (in Benizakura for example when Kagura said this other chick had sth on her panties or every Elizabeth moment, in Yagyu the toilet scene, Yoshiwara kunais in the head, etc.) so it's never completely serious. And there aren't so many pompous moments as in One Piece for example or as many annoying scenes like for example saying "nakama" or "Robin" every 2 seconds while crying like a girl... Which reminds me, Gin is one of the best characters I've seen, he has no shred of (o)estrogens unlike Luffy who cries and acts like a girl. Gin is more like Gutts but has a more optimistic attitude than him.

Agreed. Plus every serious arc in Gintama has some hilarious moments (in Benizakura for example when Kagura said this other chick had sth on her panties or every Elizabeth moment, in Yagyu the toilet scene, Yoshiwara kunais in the head, etc.) so it's never completely serious.

Exactly. Even the comedy parts are at their finest during the "serious arcs", that's how much Sorachi steps up his game for them. Like WMB said, the toiled episode was beyond hilarious, probably the funniest in the series, and it was part of one these arcs too. So really, they deliver on every front: humour, drama and action. The balance between them is usually perfect too and so far this Four Denvas arc has been no exception. We've laughed with Pirako's antics, we've cried with Otose's final moments and we've experienced an incredibly well animated fight full of top notch action. It's all there and it's Gintama at its best for sure.

So yeah, I'll take a serious arc over the episodic stuff any day of the week. Of course, if it were ALL serious arcs then they'd probably lose their charm, so it's probably a good idea not to overdo them. Though I do wish they'd come around more often sometimes.

In other news, the anime is better than the manga, and the serious arcs are better than the comedic ones. Naruto and Bleach's got nothing on the serious arcs of Gintama.

Indeed. And the best part is that Gintama's few serious arcs tell an amazing story in a meagre 8 episodes or so. Whereas Naruto and Bleach (and One Piece for that matter) are filled with serious arcs, but it still takes them like 30 episodes to get shit done each time.

Myself, i love the whole package. I wouldn't have the episodic episodes without the serious arcs, or the serious arcs without the episodic episodes.

Quoted for truth and agreed! I love Gintama's comedy and find the serious arcs to be so incredibly epic, I think both make up the series and make it unique. I don't know many other anime that can manage both with such ease. Perhaps it's cause Gintama's comedy really clicks with me, living in Japan and getting to know the culture a bit might've helped me understand many more of the jokes... for example, I'm wondering how many people got the Taiga drama reference in that episode with the New Year's cards

Myself, i love the whole package. I wouldn't have the episodic episodes without the serious arcs, or the serious arcs without the episodic episodes.

YES! I think it has the perfect balance. Of course, there are some (few and far between) episodes that I didn't like much but overall, this series has been able to do what so many have failed to do. It makes me genuinely laugh and when its serious; it really tugs the heartstrings.